Understanding Music NATIONAL...
Transcript of Understanding Music NATIONAL...
St Benedict’s High School
Understanding Music
NATIONAL 5 Revision Booklet
Helpful Websites
Type the following into Google and click the first result:
NQMusic
Also try
Learn Listening Online and Music Listening Revision
Contents:
Page
1 National 5 Concept Dictionary 2
2 Concept Groupings:
Tempos & Dynamics 5
Instruments & How they are played 6
Styles & Ensembles 7
Scottish & Vocal 8
Tonality, Structure, Texture, Periods,
Effects, Scales & Word Setting
9
3 Literacy 10
4 National 3 & 4 Concepts 12
5 Exam Paper Layout & Questions 14
1. NATIONAL 5 CONCEPT DICTIONARY
Category Concept Definition Melody / Harmony
Atonal Music which has no feeling of key, major or minor. It is very dissonant and lacks a ‘nice’ melody and accompaniment.
Chord Progression (I, IV, V, VI) A series of related chords. At N5 level, these chords are built on the 1st, 4th, 5th and 6th notes of a major or minor scale.
Chords C Major (CEG), G Major (GBD), F Major (FAC) & A Minor (ACE)
Chromatic Notes which ascend or descend consecutively in intervals of semitones.
Cluster A group of notes which clash when played together.
Contrary Motion Two parts which move in opposite directions, e.g. as one part ascends the other descends.
Countermelody A second melody played alongside the main melody, with the two of them fitting together with different tunes.
Descant A countermelody which accompanies and is sung above the main melody, often during hymns.
Flat An accidental which lowers the note by a semitone e.g. A to Ab.
Glissando Sliding from one note to another, taking in all the notes in between, where possible.
Grace Note A type of ornament, played as a quick, crushed note before the main note of a melody.
Imperfect Cadence Two chords at the end of a phrase, the last being chord V (the dominant), making it sound unfinished.
Inverted Pedal A note which is held on or repeated continuously at a high pitch, while other music goes on underneath.
Key signatures C Major & A Minor (no #/b), G Major (1 - f#), F Major (1 – Bb)
Melismatic A type of ‘word setting’ where several notes sung to one syllable.
Modulation When the music changes key.
Natural An accidental which removes any other accidental by raising or lowering a note by a semitone e.g. F# lowers a semitone to F natural, Gb raises a semitone to G natural.
Perfect Cadence Two chords at the end of a phrase, specifically the dominant to tonic chords (chord V – chord I), making the phrase sound finished.
Pitch bend Changing the pitch of a note slightly, e.g. by plucking a string on a guitar then pulling the pressed fretboard string downwards or upwards.
Semitone A distance of half a tone, e.g. B to Bb or F to G on a keyboard, or from one fret to the next on guitar.
Sharp An accidental which raises the note by a semitone e.g. C to C#.
Syllabic A type of ‘word setting’ in vocal music where each syllable is given one note only.
Tone A distance of two semitones between two notes, e.g. from B to A or F to F# on a keyboard, or two frets on a guitar.
Trill Moving quickly and repeatedly between two notes which are a step apart.
Whole tone scale A scale built entirely on whole tones. It uses no semitones, e.g. C, D, E, F#, G#, A# (Bb), C.
Category Concept Definition
Rhythm / Tempo
1st & 2nd time bars Directions to the performer to repeat a phrase with an alternative ending.
Compound time The beat is divided into groups of three, e.g. 6/8, 9/8, 12/8.
Cross rhythms Contrasting rhythms played at the same time or played with unusual emphasis on notes.
Dotted crotchet A note lasting 1½ beats:
Dotted quaver A note lasting ¾ of a beat:
Dotted rhythms A rhythm made up of dotted notes. For example, a scotch snap.
Moderato A medium tempo (speed).
Ritardando The music slows down.
Rubato A rhythmic feature, known as ‘robbed time’. The tempo is flexible to allow the music to speed up and slow down in order to provide more expression. Romantic music often uses rubato.
Scotch Snap A very short accented note before a longer note, e.g. semiquaver followed by a dotted quaver.
Category Concept Definition Texture / Structure / Form
Alberti bass Broken chords played on piano by the left hand, outlining harmonies, whilst the right hand plays the melody.
Binary – AB A form in which the music is made up of two different sections, called A and B.
Coda A passage at the end of a piece of music which effectively brings it to a finish.
Contrapuntal Texture with two or more parts, each of which has an interesting and independent melodic line. It is similar in meaning to polyphonic.
Episode A passage of music linking two musical themes, such as in Rondo Form
Ground bass Often used in the Baroque period, a theme in the bass which is repeated many times, while the upper parts vary.
Homophonic A texture where all the parts play or sing a similar rhythm at the same time.
Polyphonic Texture where two or more melodic lines, possibly of equal importance, weave independently to each other.
Rondo – ABACA A form in which the first section (A) keeps returning in between different sections (B, C etc.)
Strophic A form in which a song has the same music in verses/choruses. Most songs are in strophic form.
Walking bass A bass line (low notes), often featured in a variety of jazz styles. It is regular in rhythm and moves up and down a pattern of notes and is often played on a double bass or bass guitar.
Category Concept Definition Styles
Aria A solo song sung in an operatic style, in an opera, oratorio or cantata, with orchestral accompaniment.
Bothy Ballad A folk song from North-East Scotland, sung with the local dialect and usually with many verses (strophic).
Celtic Rock A style of music that mixes Celtic folk with rock music.
Chorus Music sung by a group of singers or the refrain between verses of a song.
Classical Music composed during the years 1750-1810 approximately; the era of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven.
Gaelic Psalm Unaccompanied psalms (hymns) sung in Gaelic. One singer usually begins, with the congregation joining in afterwards.
Gospel Songs written with religious lyrics, often in praise or thanksgiving to God.
Indian Music from India which uses instruments such as the sitar and tabla.
Minimalist A style created in the second half of the 20th century, based on simple rhythmic and melodic figures which are constantly repeated with very slight changes each time.
Pibroch Music for solo bagpipes, in theme and variation form and with grace notes.
Symphony A large work for orchestra, usually in four movements.
Waulking Song A traditional rhythmic song, sung in Gaelic by the women in the Western Isles of Scotland while they waulked woollen cloth to soften and shrink it.
.
.
Category Concept Definition Timbre / Dynamics
A capella Unaccompanied singing.
Arco Instruction given to string players to use a bow.
Baritone A male voice whose range lies between that of bass and tenor.
Con sordino Muted – using a device to muffle and change the sound normally produced on an instrument.
Flutter tonguing An effect created by rolling your ‘r’s’ whilst playing a brass or woodwind instrument.
Fortissimo (ff) A dynamic volume instructing the performer to play very loudly.
Mezzo Soprano A female singer whose voice range lies between that of a soprano and an alto.
Pianissimo (pp) A dynamic volume instructing the performer to play very quietly.
Pizzicato An instruction given to string players to pluck the strings instead of using the bow. It is abbreviated as pizz.
Reverb An electronic effect which can give the impression of different hall acoustics. Some electric guitar amplifiers include a reverb effect.
Rolls A very fast repetition of a note on a percussion instrument, e.g. on a snare drum or timpani.
Sfortzando A dynamic volume instructing the performer to suddenly play very loudly.
(French) Horn A brass instrument which has four metres of curled metal tubing and a bell-shaped opening for the sound to exit. To produce a sound, a player blows air through the mouthpiece while vibrating their lips.
Bassoon A low-sounding woodwind instrument which has a double reed.
Bodhran An Irish wooden drum which is held in one hand and played with a wooden beater.
Bongo Drums A percussion instrument which has two fairly high-pitched drums joined in a pair and usually played with the fingers and palms of the hands.
Castanets A wooden or plastic untuned percussion instrument, popular in Spanish music.
Clarsach A small Scottish harp, used in folk music. ‘Clarsach’ is Gaelic for ‘harp’.
Cymbals
Hi-hat Used as part of a drum kit, two cymbals (one upside-down) that can be hit with a stick or brush and/or opened/closed with a foot pedal.
Oboe A woodwind instrument with a double reed. A sound is produced when air vibrates between the two reeds.
Piccolo A woodwind instrument which looks like a half-sized flute. It is played in the same way and sounds an octave higher than a standard flute.
Sitar A plucked Indian guitar.
Tabla Indian drums, often used to accompany the sitar.
Tuba The largest sized and lowest sounding brass instrument. To produce a sound, a player blows air through the mouthpiece while vibrating their lips.
Viola A string instrument which looks very similar but is slightly bigger in size and lower in pitch than the violin. It can be played with a bow or by plucking the strings.
2. CONCEPT GROUPINGS
TEMPOS – SPEEDS
DYNAMICS – LOUDS & QUIETS
Tempo Meaning
Allegro Fast
Moderato Moderate tempo
Andante Walking Pace
Adagio Slow
Accelerando Gradually getting faster
Rallentando / Ritardando
Gradually getting slower
Rubato Robbed or borrowed time – speeding up or slowing down to suit the mood of the piece.
A tempo To return to the original tempo.
Dynamic Italian English meaning
pp Pianissimo Very quiet
p Piano Quiet
mp Mezzo-piano Moderately quiet
mf Mezzo-forte Moderately loud
f Forte Loudly
ff Fortissimo Very loudly
cresc. Crescendo Gradually getting louder
dim. Diminuendo Gradually getting softer
sfz. Sforzando Suddenly getting loud
INSTRUMENTS & HOW THEY ARE PLAYED
Instruments Playing Technique
Strings Violin Acoustic Guitar Arco – Bowed Viola Electric Guitar Pizzicato – Plucked Cello Bass Guitar Strumming – Drawing fingers or a Double Bass Harp plectrum across the strings
Woodwind
Piccolo Clarinet Blown - Air is blown through Flute Bassoon instrument to produce sound Oboe Saxophone Flutter Tonguing - Rolling an ‘R’ while Panpipes Recorder blowing a note.
Brass
Trumpet Trombone Con Sordino - Muted - creating a quieter French Horn Tuba and softer sound than normal
Percussion Untuned Percussion: Snare Drum Bodhran Drum kit Striking - Hitting - sound produced by Bongo Drums Guiro Cymbals hitting the instrument
Bass Drum Castanets Triangle Rolls - very fast repetition of a note.
Tambourine Hi-hat cymbal Tuned Percussion:
Xylophone (wooden) Glockenspiel (metal) Timpani (Kettle Drum)
Keyboard: Scottish: Indian:
Piano Organ Fiddle Bagpipes Sitar Tabla Harpsichord Clarsach Accordion
MUSICAL ENSEMBLES
Orchestra - Strings, Brass, Woodwind & Percussion. Brass Band - Brass & Percussion. Wind Band - Brass, Woodwind & Percussion. Folk Group - Fiddle, Guitar, Vocals, Accordion Whistle, Bass, Flute, Drum kit, Bodhran. Scottish Dance Band - Fiddle, Accordion, Piano, Drums. Steel Band - Steel drums (pans).
MUSICAL STYLES
Celtic Rock - Mixes Scottish folk music with rock music. Reggae - Off beat guitar, vocals, drums, organ, bass. Minimalist - Simple and repetitive ostinatos. Ragtime - Piano: Syncopated melody & vamp accompaniment. Blue - Jazz style, developed from black American
folk songs. Tells a story. Flattened notes. Swing - A jazz style performed by a big band. Jazz - American music from in the early 20th century. Rock - Music with a heavy, driving beat. Features electric guitar, bass guitar and drum kit. Pop - Popular music (chart music) Rock ‘n’ roll - 1950’s style music, think Elvis Presley. Musical - A vocal work, like a modern opera. Scottish - Music traditionally from Scotland. Latin American - Dance music from South America. Rapping - Rhyming lyrics that are spoken. African music - Much African music features voices and/or
African drums. Opera - A drama set to music with soloists, chorus,
acting, and orchestral accompaniment Romantic - 1810-1900; big orchestras and thick texture. Baroque - 1600-1750; harpsichord and ornaments Indian - Music from India which uses instruments such
as the sitar and tabla. Classical - 1750-1810; piano Gospel - A song with religious lyrics, often in praise or
thanksgiving to God
Pibroch - Solo bagpipe; grace notes, theme & variation
SCOTTISH MUSIC
Song Who? Where/About? Accomp? Other?
Waulking Song Women At work No ‘Thud’ Beating sound
Bothy Ballad Men Farm work Usually no Tells story
Gaelic Psalm Both Church North Scotland
No In Gaelic, Call & Response, eerie/echo
Mouth Music Both Nonsense made up Gaelic words
Maybe Imitating melody of bagpipes
Scots Ballad Both Telling story Maybe Lots of verses and chorus, Strophic
VOCAL
Voices – Highest to lowest Vocal concepts
Soprano
Mezzo Soprano FEMALE
Alto
Tenor
Baritone MALE
Bass
Voice
Lead Vocal
Backing Vocal
Choir
Chorus Aria
Melismatic Syllabic
Strophic
Dance Speed Beats Other features
Waltz Medium 3 I LOVE YOU: Only 3 beat dance
Jig Fast 2 – 6/8 time STRAWBERRY: Compound time
Reel Fast 4 COCA COLA: Simple time, flowing
Strathspey Medium 4 porridge PORRIDGE: Jumpy, Scotch Snap
March Marching speed 2 or 4 MARCHING: Steady, strong pulse.
TONALITY
MAJOR MINOR ATONAL
STRUCTURE
BINARY FORM TERNARY FORM RONDO FORM
THEME & VARIATION STROPHIC
TEXTURE
HOMOPHONIC POLYPHONIC/CONRAPUNTAL
PERIODS OF MUSIC
BAROQUE CLASSICAL MODERN
EFFECTS
DISTORTION REVERB
SCALES
MAJOR MINOR PENTATONIC WHOLE TONE
CHROMATIC BLUES
WORD SETTING
MELISMATIC SYLLABIC
3. LITERACY
Symbol Name Length (beats) Semibreve 4
Dotted Minim 3
Minim 2
Dotted Crotchet 1 ½
Crotchet 1
Dotted Quaver ¾
Quaver ½
Semiquaver ¼
Paired Quavers 1
Grouped Semiquavers 1
Scotch Snap 1
KEY SIGNATURES
C Major = 0 sharps or flats A Minor = 0 sharps or flats BUT watch out for G#s
in the music!
F Major = 1 flat b (Bb) G Major = 1 Sharp #
(G#)
.
.
Accidentals:
Sharp:
Flat:
Natural:
Intervals:
Tone:
Semitone:
Lines Spaces
Every Good Boy
Deserves Football F A C E
Notes below the stave Notes above the stave
Repeat Signs
Start End
1st & 2nd time bars
Time Signatures – go right at the beginning of the first line,
between the treble clef and key signature.
= 2 crotchet beats per bar = 3 crotchet beats per bar Simple time Simple time = 4 crotchet beats per bar = 6 quavers per bar (splits Simple time into 2 beats) Compound time
4. NATIONAL 3 & 4 CONCETPS
You also need to know all of the National 3 and National 4 concepts.
NATIONAL 3 CONCEPTS
Melody/Harmony Rhythm/Tempo Texture/Structure/Form Timbre/Dynamics Style
Ascending
Chord
Chord change
Descending
Discord
Improvisation
Leap (leaping)
Question & answer
Repetition
Sequence
Step (stepwise)
Accent/accented
Adagio
Allegro
Bar; 2, 3 or 4 beats
in a bar
Beat/pulse
Drum fill
Faster
March
On the beat/off
the beat
Pause
Reel
Repetition
Slower
Waltz
Accompanied
Harmony/chord
Ostinato/riff
Round
Solo
Unaccompanied
Unison/octave
Accordion
Acoustic guitar
Bagpipes
Blowing
Bowing
Brass
Choir
Drum kit
Electric guitar
Fiddle
Folk group
Orchestra
Organ
Percussion
(tuned/untuned)
Piano
Plucking
Scottish dance band
Staccato/legato
Steel band
Striking (hitting)
Strings
Strumming
Voice
Woodwind
Blues
Jazz
Latin
American
Musical
Pop
Rock
Rock ‘n’
Roll
Scottish
NATIONAL 4 CONCEPTS Melody/Harmony Rhythm/Tempo Texture/Structure/
Form
Timbre/Dynamics Style
Arpeggio
Broken chord
Change of key
Chord progression (I,
IV, V)
Drone
Major
Minor
Octave
Ornament
Pedal
Pentatonic scale
Scale
Scat singing
Vamp
A tempo
Accelerando
Anacrusis
Andante
Compound time
Dotted rhythms
Jig
Rallentando
Scotch snap
Simple time
(2/4, 3/4, 4/4)
Strathspey
Syncopation
Cadenza
Canon
Chorus
Imitation
Middle 8
Ternary (ABA)
Theme & variation
Verse
Backing vocals
Bass guitar
Brass band
Brass (trumpet,
trombone)
Distortion
Harpsichord
Muted
Pan pipes
Wind band
Percussion (timpani,
snare drum, side
drum, bass drum,
cymbals, triangle,
tambourine, guiro,
xylophone,
glockenspiel)
Strings (violin, cello,
double bass, harp)
Voices (soprano, alto,
tenor, bass)
Woodwind (flute,
clarinet, saxophone,
recorder)
African
music
Baroque
Concerto
Mouth
music
Opera
Ragtime
Rapping
Reggae
Romantic
Scots ballad
Swing
Literacy:
Treble clef stave C-A’
Sequences
Literacy:
Semiquaver
Grouped
semiquavers
Paired quavers
Repeat signs
Literacy:
mf, mezzo-forte
f, forte
5. EXAM PAPER LAYOUT & QUESTIONS
Question 1a-f: Multiple Choice - 6 Marks with a few “write
the word” questions.
Question 2: Box question (musical map) - 4 Marks 4 numbered boxes. Voice says the number over the music & you must answer the question in the related box when the number is said.
Question 3: Literacy Question – 6 Marks
Eg. Name the key of this piece, insert the time signature, insert missing notes, insert repeat sign, identify octave leaps, write dynamics, write tempo marks.
Question 4: Multiple Choice – 8 Marks
Question 5: - 4 Marks
Tick one box from
each section.
Question 6: Fill in the missing words – 3 Marks
Question 7: - 4 Marks - Reason Question: Multiple choice
plus write reason for answer.
Question 8: - 5 Marks Write about the prominent features you
hear in the music.
Fill out this box then transfer it to the lines on the next page.
Rhythm/tempo
Melody/harmony
Instruments/voices
Dynamics (Italian terms)
Melody Harmony
Rhythm Tempo
Instruments and how they are used
Dynamics
Broken Chords Chords/ Discords Glissando Homophonic/ Polyphonic Imitation Legato /Staccato Major/Minor Melismatic/ Syllabic Modulation Pedal Question & Answer Repetition Sequence Suspensions Unison/Harmony Ornaments: trill, grace notes Scales: Major/Minor scale, Chromatic scale, Pentatonic scale
Beats in a bar / Time Signature: 2/4, 3/4, 4/4, Simple Time 6/8 – Compound Time Speed: Allegro – Fast Adagio – Slow Andante – walking pace Moderato – moderate Speed Changes: Accelerando – faster Rallentando – slower Ritardando – slower Rubato – with freedom Anacrusis Dotted Rhythms Ostinato Repetition Scotch Snap Syncopation
Brass – Trumpet, French Horn, Trombone, Tuba Woodwind – Piccolo, Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon, Saxophone, Recorder Strings – Violin, Viola, Cello, Double Bass, Harp Percussion – Xylophone, Glockenspiel, Timpani, Triangle, Snare Drum, Drumkit, Bass Drum, Tambourine, Castanets Keyboard – Piano, Synthesizer, Harpsichord, Organ, Celeste Guitars – Electric, Acoustic, Bass, Banjo Solo, Melody, Countermelody Accompaniment, Chords, Broken Chords Glissando, Arpeggios Arco – bowed, Grace notes, ornaments Muted, Pizzicato - plucked Col Legno – wood of bow, Double Stopping Female Voices: Soprano, Mezzo Soprano, Alto Male Voices: Tenor, Baritone, Bass Countertenor – high like a woman. Solo; Accompaniment; Melody; Countermelody
pp – pianissimo – very quiet p – piano – quiet mp – mezzo piano – moderately quiet mf – mezzo forte – moderately loud f – forte – loud ff – fortissimo – very loud Changes of dynamic: Cres. – Crescendo – getting louder Dim. – diminuendo – getting quieter.